Nestle shares down as HC refuses to stay ban on Maggi

Shares of Nestle India fell by over 2 per cent today after Bombay High Court declined to grant relief to the company by rejecting its plea for stay on orders of food regulators banning nine variants of Maggi noodles from the Indian market.

The stock ended 2.14 per cent lower at Rs 5,948.65 on BSE. During the day, it fell by 3 per cent to Rs 5,896.

At the NSE, it slipped 2.17 per cent to Rs 5,955.05.

Bombay High Court on Friday declined to grant relief to Nestle India by rejecting its plea for stay on orders of food regulators banning nine variants of Maggi noodles from the Indian market as they were harmful to public health.

Hearing a plea of the Indian arm of the Swiss multinational, Justices V M Kanade and B P Colabawala were of the view that due to the impunged orders, Maggi products had already been withdrawn from the shops and hence there was no need to grant a stay on the ban.

The company had moved the High Court challenging the ban imposed by a June 5 order by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) banning nine variants of the popular instant snack.

Nestle had sought quashing of the June 5 order of FSSAI and its Chief Executive Officer asking the company to withdraw and recall all its nine variants of Maggi from the market as they were unsafe and harmful for human consumption.